Print Spooled Document First - How to adjust printer spooling
Last Updated:Last updated: September 24, 2026.
Quick answer: "Print spooled documents first" is a Windows printer setting. It tells the print queue to send finished, fully spooled jobs before any job that is still being prepared, so one huge file doesn't hold up everyone else's quick prints. It's on by default, and for most home and office printers you should leave it on. You'll find it under Printer Properties → Advanced.
What Does "Spooled" Mean in Printing?
Spooling (from SPOOL, "simultaneous peripheral operations on-line") means the computer first writes the whole print job to a temporary file on disk, and then feeds it to the printer at the printer's own pace. The program you printed from is freed up almost immediately, so you can keep working while the job trickles out. The Windows Print Spooler service manages that queue for every printer on the computer.
What Does "Print Spooled Documents First" Do?
With this option on, the spooler looks at the queue and prints any job that has finished spooling ahead of one that is still spooling, even if the unfinished one was sent first. Picture a colleague sending a 300-page PDF and you sending a one-page memo a moment later. Your memo prints as soon as it's ready instead of waiting behind the big file. With the option off, jobs print strictly in the order they were sent.
How Do I Turn On "Print Spooled Documents First"?
- Open Settings → Bluetooth & devices → Printers & scanners (Windows 11), or Control Panel → Devices and Printers.
- Select your printer, then open Printer properties. This is not "Printing preferences."
- Go to the Advanced tab.
- Tick Print spooled documents first, then click Apply.
If the box is greyed out, you need administrator rights, or the printer is shared from another computer and the setting has to be changed on that host machine.
What Are the Other Spooling Options on the Advanced Tab?
| Option | What it does | When to use it |
|---|---|---|
| Spool print documents so program finishes printing faster (default) | Jobs go to disk first, so your app is freed quickly | Almost always |
| ↳ Start printing after last page is spooled | Waits until the whole job is on disk before printing | Printers that jam or pause mid-job on large files; networks with slow connections |
| ↳ Start printing immediately (default) | Begins printing as soon as the first page is spooled | Fastest first page for most users |
| Print directly to the printer | Skips the spooler entirely; your app waits until printing ends | Troubleshooting only, for example when the spooler keeps crashing |
| Hold mismatched documents | Holds jobs whose paper or setup doesn't match what's loaded | Printers with several trays or special media |
| Keep printed documents | Leaves finished jobs in the queue so they can be reprinted | Rarely. It fills the spool folder over time |
Should I Spool or Print Directly to the Printer?
Spool. Printing directly ties up your program until the printer finishes and gives up the queue features that prevent jobs from colliding. Switch to "print directly" only as a temporary workaround when the spooler service itself is failing, and switch back once it's fixed.
"Start Printing After Last Page Is Spooled" vs "Start Printing Immediately"
"Immediately" gives you the first page sooner. "After last page" is slower to start but more reliable for very large jobs, over Wi-Fi, or on printers that stop halfway and print blank or garbled pages. If big jobs fail mid-way, switch to "after last page is spooled." If jobs print garbled text, see how to fix a printer that prints gibberish.
What If the Print Spooler Is Stuck?
If jobs sit at "Spooling" or "Error" and won't clear, the spooler needs to be restarted and its temporary folder emptied. Follow how to restart the print spooler for Windows and Mac steps.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is "print spooled documents first" on by default?
Yes, on most Windows printer drivers. Some manufacturer drivers ship with it off, so check the Advanced tab if small jobs keep getting stuck behind large ones.
Does this setting exist on a Mac?
No. macOS uses the CUPS printing system, which spools automatically and doesn't expose this option. You can pause, resume or reorder jobs from the printer's queue window.
Will turning this on make printing faster?
It won't make the printer itself faster. It makes the queue fairer, so small, finished jobs don't wait behind large ones that are still spooling.
Where is the Print Spooler service?
Press Windows + R, type services.msc and press Enter. Print Spooler is in the list, where you can stop, start or restart it.
More printer fixes are in the printer troubleshooting center.
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